


Dawning.

by theweakestthing



Category: IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - High School, Bisexual Richie Tozier, Don’t copy to another site, First Kiss, Fluff, Gay Eddie Kaspbrak, Love Confessions, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Running through the Rain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2021-01-04 00:47:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21188759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theweakestthing/pseuds/theweakestthing
Summary: “I don’t think I could ever hate you,” he admitted, blushing as he ducked his head and pushed his hair behind his ear.Richie was sure that Eddie would take it back as quick as he could, but as the seconds ticked by, Eddie didn’t say a thing.“Thanks Eds,” Richie murmured, buckling under Eddie’s timid smile, “I could never hate you either,” he added, it was probably the truest thing that he would ever say.





	Dawning.

Richie was laid out on the concrete. Lying in the middle of the road and staring up at the sky. No one ever came down this far on Neibolt Street, not on foot let alone by car. The chances of getting hit were probably the same as getting struck by lightning. It wasn’t out of the question, but it still wasn’t likely. He could barely hear the traffic from a few streets over.

His eyes traced over the clouds as they drifted slowly through the bleak grey sky. It was probably going to rain sooner or later. He should get up before that, he thought, considering the fact that he wasn’t even wearing a jacket. Still, he stayed lying there.

Long before it reached him, Richie could hear the approaching bicycle. The sound tumbled through Richie’s mind and cleared it. He thought it was going to pass right by him, maybe the rider would yell something at him as they passed, but he didn’t expect to hear the short squeal of the breaks as the bike stopped beside him.

“What are you doing Richie?” Eddie asked, brows furrowed, casting shadows over his eyes as he stared down at Richie.

Eddie was wearing a sensible jacket, a woollen hat and a serious face. Richie could still see the smattering of freckles sprinkled across Eddie’s face like chocolate chips in cookie dough. Fingers curled over the handles of his bike, feet planted firmly on the ground. Richie’s stomach flipped.

He didn’t want to see Eddie, he didn’t want to see anyone that was why he’d come there in the first place, but he especially didn’t want to see Eddie. No one was supposed to come out here. There wasn’t a damn thing on this side of town, the road led to the dead train yard where the freights only came every other hour. He only knew that because Eddie had told him. Richie almost groaned aloud to himself, of course he’d come to the only place where Eddie would stumble upon him.

“Waiting for you, Eddie my love,” Richie replied smoothly without moving from where he was, still laid in the middle of the road. He slid his hands beneath his head as though he was as comfortable as could be.

“Get up, you’re gonna get run over,” Eddie returned as he looked back down the street, Richie didn’t look because he knew that there was nothing there.

“I’ve literally never seen a car on this street, at least not down this far,” Richie said. He watched Eddie’s face screw up as he looked back down at Richie.

“What will you do if one does come, eh?” Eddie said, brows raised, like he’d caught Richie out or was at least trying to.

“Guess I’ll fucking die Eds,” Richie said, smiling up at Eddie.

“Don’t call me that, you know I hate it when you call me that,” Eddie muttered, but his cheeks were reddening despite his words. “Are you okay?” he asked after a beat, face suddenly serious, lips pressed into a thin line of concern. Richie hated that look, especially when it was aimed at him. It made his gut twist with guilt.

“I don’t know,” Richie shrugged, shoulders grazing against the asphalt.

Eddie looked up and down the road again. He sighed and climbed off of his bike, leaving it in the road as he sat down next to Richie. He pulled off his hat and ran a hand through his chocolate brown hair. It was messy and wild in a way that Eddie tried not to be but revelled in when he finally allowed himself to, the sight sent thrills through Richie that he tried to smother.

“Come on Rich, what’s up?” Eddie urged softly, toying with the hat in his lap, eyes resolutely on Richie’s face.

Richie stared back. He didn’t want to lie, especially when Eddie already knew that something was up, it wouldn’t be fair. Eddie had gotten down to his level and Richie supposed that he should come up to Eddie’s.

“I know I’m like super annoying, but you guys do like me right?” Richie said sitting up, staring at his feet, muttering as he fiddled with the hole in his jeans. 

“What?” Eddie squawked, his brows flew up his head and his eyes went comically wide. Richie would have laughed if he didn’t feel so vulnerable, so exposed, so terrified of being told that this was nothing and he should just get over himself.

“It’s stupid, don’t worry about it,” Richie murmured, he brought his hands up and slid his fingers under his glasses to rub at his eyes and the bridge of his nose.

“No, Richie, of course we like you,” Eddie said as he closed his hand around Richie’s elbow, pulling Richie’s hand away from his face. “Why would you think we don’t like you?” He asked, brows pinched as though the thought alone pained him, his expression didn’t make Richie feel any better.

“I don’t know Eds, I guess I’m just overreacting, forget about it,” Richie said, trying to smile but failing miserably, he watched Eddie’s hand instead of his face.

“No I’m not gonna just forget it,” Eddie said firmly, “if I’ve done something to upset you Richie, then I want to know,” he added, flexing his fingers around Richie’s arm.

“It’s nothing,” Richie waved him off with his other hand.

“Richie, it’s clearly not fucking nothing since you’re lying in the middle of the road so just tell me,” Eddie returned, gesturing to the fact that they were still sitting in the road. It was kind of a miracle that Eddie wasn’t freaking out about how they could get run over at any moment, Richie figured that he owed Eddie the truth considering how uncomfortable this was probably making him.

“You guys told me to go away, at lunch, and I get it since you’re working on that project or whatever, but I don’t know, without you I don’t have anyone to hang out with,” Richie said, feeling exactly as miserable as he’d felt when he left the library, pretending that nothing was wrong.

“Richie,” Eddie said with feeling, as though there really was nothing to worry about, that Richie had been worrying about nothing, like he knew he was. When Richie finally looked up at him, Eddie was smiling. “Ugh, this is so dumb,” he groaned and removed his hand from Richie’s arm to drag it down his face.

“Gee, thanks Eds, I feel so much better,” Richie replied. His throat felt suddenly tight and his stomach was twisting so much, he was sure that he was going to puke at any moment.

“Shut up,” Eddie muttered, lightly batting at Richie’s shoulder. He hesitated for a moment before he pushed on. “We were planning your birthday party, since it’s coming up next week,” he explained, smiling as he stared at Richie, teeth showing in his relief.

“Oh,” Richie drew out, blinking wide eyed at Eddie, which must have looked comical considering the way his thick glasses magnified his eyes.

“Yeah, oh,” Eddie replied.

“So you don’t hate me?” Richie said, joking. He couldn’t help joking when he felt like this, all tense and lightheaded and stupid, he’d never been good at dealing with his feelings.

“No Richie I don’t hate you,” Eddie said, laughing lightly as he shook his head. He swallowed and stared at Richie for an immeasurable moment, blinking as they breathed in the thick air between them. Richie couldn’t help but watch the way that Eddie’s tongue darted out to lick at his lips. “I don’t think I could ever hate you,” he admitted, blushing as he ducked his head and pushed his hair behind his ear.

Richie was sure that Eddie would take it back as quick as he could, but as the seconds ticked by, Eddie didn’t say a thing.

“Thanks Eds,” Richie murmured, buckling under Eddie’s timid smile, “I could never hate you either,” he added, it was probably the truest thing that he would ever say.

For a moment, Richie was as brave as Eddie made him feel, he reached out and closed his hand over Eddie’s against the asphalt. There were probably like a billion and one different kinds of bacteria on the ground, but Eddie wasn’t pulling away and that small thing meant the world to Richie.

Then the sky opened up and rain began to beat against the asphalt and their bodies. Eddie snatched his hand away as he jumped onto his feet, picked his bike up from the ground.

“Come on Richie, you’ll catch the fucking flu if you don’t get off the ground, people die of the flu all the time,” Eddie yelled, even as Richie was getting up, shaking as he pulled the bike upright. He stuffed the hat into his jacket pocket and pulled his hood over his head. “My mom’s gonna fucking kill me, she’s gonna take me straight to the hospital and we’ll be in A&E all night, all night Richie because they know it’s bullshit and they make us wait all fucking night before they tell her that there’s nothing wrong with me,” he rambled, striding down the street as quickly as he could without running, without getting on his bike.

It would have been faster to get on the bike, but Richie knew that Eddie would be thinking about how dangerous it would be to ride in the rain, how different the breaks would feel. He could already hear the wheeze in Eddie’s breathing.

“I know Eds,” Richie said, walking as fast as he could for a fifteen year old smoker. He was already drenched to the bone. His glasses were dripping with water, it would be pointless to wipe them since they would just get wet again. His clothes were clinging to his body, slick against his skin, goose flesh rising over every inch of him. His hair was a fuzzy mop against his head. “You can come back to mine and get dry, we’ll call your mom and say that we have to do a project or something, she knows I get good grades so that’ll shut her up,” he suggested, pushing his hair out of his face.

“You sure that’s fine Richie?” Eddie asked, looking pensively over at Richie.

“Of course I am,” Richie said, smiling back at Eddie as the water slipped over his face, dripping off of his nose.

“Thanks Richie,” Eddie said, smiling softly as he tried to catch his breath without slowing down.

“Anytime,” Richie returned, hoping that his blush didn’t show, “my house is closer anyways,” he added, shrugging, because he didn’t know what else to say and he didn’t want to walk in silence.

They power walked the whole way to Richie’s house, water sloshing off of them. Richie was starting to get the shivers but was trying not to act like it because that’d worry Eddie. People were rushing through the streets. Newspapers held over their heads, kids screaming as they scrambled into their houses, people running from their cars, cats cowered on porches. Finally they made it to Richie’s house. They took cover under the respite of his porch as he struggled to fish his keys out of his damp pocket.

As soon they got inside, Richie began to strip. No one was home, his parents worked late all the time and it wasn’t even five pm yet, so they were fine for a while. It wasn’t like Richie wouldn’t have striped at the door even if his parents were there. Eddie was still in the hall, pulling off his shoes as he braced himself against the wall with his palm. Richie was down to his underwear by the time Eddie had hung up his jacket on one of the pegs by the door.

“Could you get me some clothes to, you know, change into?” Eddie asked, standing awkwardly in the entryway as he resolutely did not look at Richie.

“Sure thing spaghetti man,” Richie said and scrambled up the stairs and into his room. He pulled out his cleanest and most comfortable clothes for Eddie to wear, flannel pyjama pants and a grey t-shirt with a big cartoon sea bass on it, and just picked up whatever he could for himself. He went into the bathroom and got a couple of towels before he went back downstairs.

Richie led Eddie into the laundry room. It was dry and stuffy in there, and passed him the spare towel. He turned away from Eddie, giving the other some privacy, and towelled himself down as he tried not to think about how Eddie was undressing behind him. Richie got changed quickly, wiped his glasses on his shirt and left the towel on his head.

Eddie knew exactly what to do with the washer and the dryer because of course he did, Richie had no idea what to do so he just let Eddie get on with it. They sat on the floor and watched as their clothes spun around. They were lucky that they had both been wearing dark clothes.

It was warm and Richie felt strangely comfortable, all fuzzy inside. Not an hour ago, Richie had been lying in the middle of the road feeling pathetic and lonely, now he was sat in his laundry room next to Eddie who was wearing his clothes, looking just as warm and comfortable as Richie felt. His hair was a mess of brown waves that Eddie’s mother would hate. 

“You wanna call your mom?” Richie asked, remembering how much crap Eddie would be in if he didn’t, the last thing he wanted was for Eddie to be grounded. It might have been selfish, but he figured it was fine since Eddie wouldn’t want to be grounded either.

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot,” Eddie said and shot onto his feet, he practically ran out of the room and into the kitchen. Richie followed close behind.

He leant against the doorframe as he watched Eddie pensively speak into the phone, he towelled his hair some more, needing something to do as he crossed his fingers and hoped that Eddie wouldn’t be in trouble. A smile spread across Eddie’s face as he put the phone down with a click.

Usually, Eddie was a terrible liar, but the rest of them, especially Richie himself and Beverly, had taught him how to lie to his mother. They’d coached him in the clubhouse, sat around in a circle around him, critiquing Eddie’s performance like he was delivering a Shakespearian soliloquy. Eddie was a quick leaner and took to lying to his mom like a fish to water. It’d given them all a little more freedom.

“We in the clear?” Richie asked, flashing his own smile at Eddie.

“Yeah, she took it hook, line and sinker,” Eddie said, gesturing to the t-shirt Richie had given him to wear and pretended to throw a line at Richie, as though he were a fish in a lake. Richie pretended to battle against the fake fishing line and they ended up laughing on the floor like a couple of hysterical five year olds, then the washer dinged.

They made their way back into the laundry room. Richie watched as Eddie moved the clothes from the washer and into the dryer, moving with ease in Richie’s house. He tried not to think too much about how Eddie was still in his clothes, but Eddie looked so good in them. Of course they didn’t fit him at all. The t-shirt was too big, the collar was loose and Richie could see Eddie’s collarbone so tantalisingly close, the pyjama pants were too long and Eddie’s feet disappeared into them.

“So…,” Richie began because he couldn’t stay in the silence, torturing himself as he watched Eddie, “whatcha got planned for my birthday?” he asked, stepping into Eddie’s personal space as the dryer started.

“It’s still a secret,” Eddie said firmly and turned around, staring up at Richie, pressing back against the dryer.

“Well, I already know it’s going to happen so you might as well tell me,” Richie said, hands either side of Eddie on the machine, caging the other in.

“No, I want something to be a surprise at least,” Eddie replied, shaking his head.

“Aw c’mon Eds,” Richie whined, pouting as he bent down slightly, curled over Eddie.

“Don’t call me that,” Eddie said but there was no bite to his words.

“Please,” Richie pushed, face inches away from Eddie’s. Richie had no idea what he was doing, he was just being as annoying as he always was. He could see the length of Eddie’s collarbone as he stared down and Eddie’s round puppy dog chocolate eyes were staring up at him, he looked sweet enough to eat and Richie was suddenly starving.

“Shut up, I’m not telling you,” Eddie said resolutely, arms crossed between them.

“Make me,” Richie said, smirking.

Eddie rocked up onto the balls of his feet and pressed a chaste kiss to Richie lips. As a way of shutting Richie up it was pretty damn effective. Richie’s mind completely blanked out as every thought fled and scurried into the darkness, every part of his being was focused on his lips as they tingled from the after-touch, as though he could still feel Eddie against him.

“Richie I didn’t-“

He didn’t give Eddie a chance to backtrack. Richie cupped Eddie’s face in his hands and kissed him, sinking down against Eddie as his knees bumped into the dryer on either side of Eddie’s body. He knew that Eddie wouldn’t have kissed him as a joke, Eddie would never be that cruel. He tried to convince himself of that as he continued to kiss Eddie. When he finally pulled away, Richie’s eyes caught on Eddie’s swollen and ruddy lips.

“I thought you were into girls, like I though you and Bev were dating,” Eddie said, voice rattling as he gestured wildly between, so much so that Richie had to lean back to avoid getting hit in the face.

“What? No, Bev and I are not dating. We just go into the utility shed together to smoke. I mean Bev’s smoking hot and she’s a great guy, but she’s like my brother, sister whatever, we’re just tight,” Richie explained, frowning at Eddie, completely confused by how Eddie could have possibly come to that conclusion.

“So you don’t like girls?” Eddie said, like he needed Richie to be clear.

“I like whoever Eds, is this the fabled biphobia I’ve read about on the internet?” Richie said, trying to joke as he stepped back from Eddie. He felt kind of like he was choking.

“You’re confusing the shit out of me Rich,” Eddie whined and punched Richie lightly on the chest.

“I like you Eddie, I wanna kiss you, I want you to be my boyfriend, I wanna hold your hand all the time and shit,” Richie said, mostly because it was what he’d been thinking practically since he’d met Eddie and he wanted Eddie to stop freaking out. He could have just said that he liked boys and girls. But that was too impersonal when Eddie had gone and kissed him.

“That’s the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard,” Eddie groaned and rolled his eyes.

“Ugh, just let me kiss you again,” Richie said, stepping back into Eddie’s personal space, fingers ghosting over the tip of Eddie’s chin.

“You don’t have to ask, you tall idiot,” Eddie said through gritted teeth as he fisted his hand in the front of Richie’s shirt, pulling him down into a crushing kiss. Eddie’s lips were soft and warm, and Richie just wanted to kiss him for the rest of his life and it really wasn’t fair that he couldn’t.

“So you wanna be boyfriends right?” Richie asked, lips moving against Eddie’s as he spoke, smirking as he pressed their foreheads together. Bodies pressed against each other and against the dryer again, which was juddering in place and made their teeth chatter together.

“Yes,” Eddie nodded eagerly and captured Richie’s lips again, pushing them away from the dryer.

“Was this going to be my birthday surprise?” Richie asked as he was backed against the wall, “’cause you would be such an amazing birthday present,” he joked as ran a hand down Eddie’s back, pulling the other closer.

“I am not your birthday present,” Eddie muttered, batting away Richie’s hands. “You’re not getting me to tell you what we’re planning,” he added, frowning up at Richie, trying to reprimand him while looking all soft with his mussed hair and kiss wet lips. 

“I could try to kiss it out of you,” Richie said and pressed a kiss to Eddie’s cheek.

“You could try, but it’s not happening,” Eddie said as he stepped back, trying to hold Richie at arm’s length. “I promised Bill and Stan that I wouldn’t.”

“They made you promise?” Richie laughed, buck teeth showing as he smiled down at Eddie.

“They don’t trust me not to tell you,” Eddie said, pouting as he looked off to the side, eyes on the doorway suddenly.

“Well, now’s your time to set yourself free from the burden of keeping this secret, I won’t tell Bill or Stan, I _promise_,” Richie said, urging Eddie on as he teased and bumped his nose against Eddie’s cheek.

“If you keep doing that, I won’t kiss you anymore,” Eddie threatened as he leaned away but didn’t step back from Richie.

“Let’s see how long you last then,” Richie said, smiling as he sat down against the wall, eyes on the door of the dryer as the clothes whirled around.

“I’m not going to break,” Eddie said firmly and dropped down on the floor beside Richie.

“How long have you been waiting to kiss me Eds?” Richie asked, smirking at Eddie as he leant his head back against the wall, glasses skewed across his face.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Eddie returned, brows pinched as he watched Richie’s face.

“Since we were like eleven, you’re just too cute, wanna kiss you all the time,” Richie said, smiling as he leaned over to kiss the top of Eddie’s head. He knew he’d just lost the silly little competition, but it didn’t matter, now that he knew he could kiss Eddie whenever he wanted, he’d do it every chance he got.

“You lose,” Eddie said, laughing erratically as he blushed. 

“Okay, I guess you can keep your secrets as long as I get to keep kissing you,” Richie said, smiling dopily as he leaned in to capture Eddie’s lips again.

They stayed on the floor, lip locked and giggly as the dryer rattled in the corner. Richie couldn’t believe his luck. All thoughts of inadequacy and doubt fled his mind and were replaced with thoughts of Eddie. Thoughts like how soft and warm and wet Eddie’s lips were, how soft and fluffy Eddie’s hair was as he ran his fingers through it, how eagerly Eddie was leaning up against him, pressing hard and fast against Richie, the way Eddie’s hands gripped at him, keeping him close. He even completely forgot about his birthday and the surprise his friends were planning. Nothing else mattered beside the way Eddie felt against him.


End file.
